The Cause and Effect Saga - Extra: Lone Star
by Faylinn Night
Summary: Sophia hadn't always been a Lone Star before she met Michelangelo. Once, she had a partner in crime, a sister. A mentor. A boyfriend. And a Sect she almost called family... [OC-Centric Drabbles] [Sophia; Cosima; Adeline]
1. Hero

**A/N:** Well, I had done a series for Nia, Mel, and Coyo (to help with " _The Distance_ "), so I figured why the hell not write Sophia too? She went through a lot in Italy, so I'm a little eager to delve into it, myself. Part two of the belated Christmas presents. XD

Sophia is 5-years-old in this drabble, so the narrative mirrors that. It was a challenge...

* * *

 **"HERO"**

Sophia ran for the house door. Her boots felt heavy and her fairy wings jumped behind her. Oh no, they were falling! The girl stopped suddenly and pulled at the wing's strings.

"Come on, Sophie!"

Sophia looked up at her big sister. Way up, until she saw Cosima's super-hero mask. "I'm not Sophie!" she cried.

Cosima stuck out her tongue. "Alright, Miss Negativity. Can we go outside now?"

Sophia's nose squished. "What's nega-vity?"

"Negativity. It means dark. Like you, little weirdo."

"I'm not weirdo or nega-vity." Sophia hit the ground with her boot. "I'm Black Butterfly."

"Which is weird. What five-year-old likes black so much?"

"I do."

"Obviously." Cosima's eyes went around.

Sophia huffed. "It's better than Starberry Girl. Yuck!"

"Hey!" Cosima waved her staff—a broom with a paper star tied around its big end. " _I_ am a pretty champion of the stars. Just like Sailor Universe. You? You're a sidekick."

"As if. I'm a hero, too."

"Not yet. You have to earn becoming a hero."

Sophia puffed her lips and put her hands into her tutu. "Who says?"

"Uh…" Cosima's shoulders went up. "Every story ever? You aren't a hero just because you say so."

"You did!"

"No, I didn't. I became a hero when I saved you."

Sophia stared at Cosima. Was big sister telling another story?

"It's true," Cosima said. "You can't remember because you were a baby, but one day, you were in your highchair. Mum was cooking. She told you 'Sophie, stop wiggling. You'll fall.' But you didn't listen." Cosima shook her head, leaning sideways. "You knocked over your drink and reached for it. Over and over until"—she gasped—"the highchair slid. You went falling. But wait!" Cosima turned and kneeled. She moved her cape away from her legs and her hands pushed upwards. "I caught you like this. You fell from the seat, but I caught you again! And squeezed you until Mum came. She told me I saved your brain."

For the longest time, Sophia made a face.

And Cosima got up and said, "Ask Mum. I was your age. And Mum was so happy, she got me this." Big sister put a finger on the star by her neck. It was yellow and kept her cape pinched. "It's called a brooch. Mum got it a special store for me being heroic."

The star was pretty. Sophia liked it and wanted one too.

"Maybe you can get one if you save me one day," Cosima said.

"I want one now!" Sophia cried. Her boot hit the floor to show how serious she was, but Cosima laughed.

"Stars are earned, Black Butterfly."

"What if I stopped some bad guys?"

Cosima laughed. "Duh! That's what heroes do."

"Then what are we waiting for?"

Sophia ran by Cosima. She opened the back door and the sun outside hurt her eyes. But she kept running. She had bad guys to find and stars to earn.


	2. Disturbed

" **DISTURBED"**

Colorful papers dotted the classroom walls, from stick figure families to fantastical landscapes. Adeline Moretti found each work charming. Although, not one paper was signed with Sophia's name.

"Forgive my urgency, Misses Moretti," said a young woman. Adeline flinched when she heard her married name, yet managed a smile as the young woman continued. "But given the new addition of an art class to the curriculum, it's in my interest to deal with these, uh, matters before they reach the Administration."

"Hence the lacking representatives," Adeline said. She chuckled. "No worries, Miss Romano. I was out of work early, anyhow. Wanted to make Pasta Ragù with Diavola Chicken for dinner. It's Sophie's favorite."

"Sounds delicious." Miss Romano giggled—a hollow act. "Um, I…I have no better way to start this, so I'll get to the point. I called because I'm concerned for Sophia."

"Why? Is she acting out?"

"In a way." Miss Romano sighed then opened a manila folder on her desk. She pushed several papers towards Adeline. "These are Sophia's. I gave her time to make changes. They've gotten worse over the week, though. And they're frightening the other kids."

"This is…" Adeline's words trailed off as she separated the artworks.

She had never seen such saturation from a red marker before, as if the paper itself bled. It added weight and grimness to the scenes that, frankly, didn't need it. The large-toothed canines that carried body parts in their snouts looked dreadful enough.

"Oh, Sophie," Adeline whispered. Her fingers trailed over a disembodied head that lay at the bottom of a black pit. The way its eyes remained open made the mother tremble.

"Our assignment was to draw our feelings," Miss Romano said. "I told everyone, even if they were sad, art is a great way to release pain. That it'll make them feel better."

"And Soph drew this"—Adeline could no more deem the artwork a monstrosity than an unfortunate tragedy—" _this_?"

"I'm sorry. You pulled Sophia from school to see a therapist, which is understandable. And it has been a while. Still, her portrayals…the chaos, the self-loathing, the anger, the fear. It's clear she's still very disturbed."

"But I—I don't—Why? She—" Adeline sniffled. "We were getting better. She wanted to come back. She—she said…"

"Misses Moretti?" Miss Romano shook her head, eyes sorrowful. "Your daughter witnessed something harrowing. I—I can't even imagine. You both want to be okay, but I think you should consider—"

Adeline clenched the blood-red papers then wagged them in front of Miss Romano's face. "I will _not_ admit my seven-year-old to an institute!"

"But she's internalizing her anxiety. That pain will cripple her if she isn't helped."

"I'm her mother. _I'm_ helping her! Okay?" No matter how times Adeline nodded, Miss Roman's expression remained impassive. No matter; her approval meant little. "I—I'll find another doctor. Fix this. I owe her that much."

"Misses—"

"Sorry for the disturbance, Miss Romano. It won't happen again." With a curt nod, Adeline stuffed the art works into her purse then exited the classroom.

Miss Romano was right about one thing: Sophia needed help. Maybe the time had come for the Moretti ladies to move from Florence. Even if it meant leaving behind Cosima's grave...

* * *

 **A/N:** These poor things... ; - ; There's a Gothic stage in Sophia's life I wanna write about, too. We'll see when I can get to that.


End file.
